Haidong Lu, PhD
Assistant Professor of Medicine (General Medicine) and Epidemiology (Chronic Diseases)DownloadHi-Res Photo
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General Internal Medicine
Primary
Chronic Disease Epidemiology
Secondary
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Assistant Professor of Medicine (General Medicine) and Epidemiology (Chronic Diseases)
Biography
Dr. Haidong Lu is an Assistant Professor of Medicine and Epidemiology with a passion for bridging epidemiology, statistics, data science, population health, and clinical research. His research focuses on applying rigorous health data science and causal inference methods to observational data (e.g., electronic health records) and integrating insights from both observational studies and randomized trials. Through this work, he aims to generate high-quality, impactful real-world evidence to inform clinical and regulatory decision-making. In addition, he is dedicated to enhancing methodologies for analyzing randomized controlled trials, particularly in addressing challenges related to non-compliance and generalizability. Dr. Lu is also interested in artificial intelligence in learning health systems. Dr. Lu earned a PhD in Epidemiology (major) and Biostatistics (minor) from UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health, and a master's degree from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. He is also clinically trained with a degree in pharmacy, further reinforcing his diverse and extensive background in health-related fields.
Dr. Lu’s current research lies at the intersection of pharmacoepidemiology, data science, and substance use, supported by a K99/R00 Pathway to Independence Award from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA). He co-leads the Yale Pharmacoepidemiology Working Group (Yale PEW), and serves as an Associate Editor for Epidemiologic Methods and AJE Advances: Research in Epidemiology, and as a Statistical Editor for the Journal of Addiction Medicine.
Last Updated on November 24, 2025.
Appointments
General Internal Medicine
Assistant ProfessorPrimaryChronic Disease Epidemiology
Assistant ProfessorSecondary
Other Departments & Organizations
Education & Training
- PhD
- The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Research
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Overview
Medical Research Interests
Addiction Medicine; Aging; Alcohol-Related Disorders; Biostatistics; Causality; Data Science; Drug Overdose; Epidemiologic Methods; Epidemiology; Health Policy; Health Services Research; HIV; Observational Study; Pharmacoepidemiology; Public Health; Research Design; Statistics; Substance-Related Disorders; Veterans; Veterans Health
Public Health Interests
HIV/AIDS; Pharmacoepidemiology; Aging; Epidemiology Methods; GIS/Disease Mapping; Substance Use, Addiction; Survival Analysis
ORCID
0000-0002-7908-2517- View Lab Website
Lu Causal Intelligence and Data Lab (LUCID Lab)
Research at a Glance
Yale Co-Authors
Frequent collaborators of Haidong Lu's published research.
Publications Timeline
A big-picture view of Haidong Lu's research output by year.
Research Interests
Research topics Haidong Lu is interested in exploring.
Gregg Gonsalves, PhD
David Fiellin, MD
David S. Fink, PhD
Fan Li, PhD
Lauretta Grau, PhD
Benjamin Howell, MD, MPH, MHS
45Publications
966Citations
Causality
HIV
Aging
Research Design
Veterans
Drug Overdose
Publications
Featured Publications
Toward a Clearer Definition of Selection Bias When Estimating Causal Effects
Lu H, Cole S, Howe C, Westreich D. Toward a Clearer Definition of Selection Bias When Estimating Causal Effects. Epidemiology 2022, 33: 699-706. PMID: 35700187, PMCID: PMC9378569, DOI: 10.1097/ede.0000000000001516.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchCitationsAltmetricMeSH KeywordsRevisiting Overadjustment Bias
Lu H, Cole S, Platt R, Schisterman E. Revisiting Overadjustment Bias. Epidemiology 2021, 32: e22-e23. PMID: 34172691, DOI: 10.1097/ede.0000000000001377.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchCitationsAltmetricClinical Effectiveness of Integrase Strand Transfer Inhibitor–Based Antiretroviral Regimens Among Adults With Human Immunodeficiency Virus: A Collaboration of Cohort Studies in the United States and Canada
Lu H, Cole S, Westreich D, Hudgens M, Adimora A, Althoff K, Silverberg M, Buchacz K, Li J, Edwards J, Rebeiro P, Lima V, Marconi V, Sterling T, Horberg M, Gill M, Kitahata M, Eron J, Moore R. Clinical Effectiveness of Integrase Strand Transfer Inhibitor–Based Antiretroviral Regimens Among Adults With Human Immunodeficiency Virus: A Collaboration of Cohort Studies in the United States and Canada. Clinical Infectious Diseases 2020, 73: e1408-e1414. PMID: 32780095, PMCID: PMC8492356, DOI: 10.1093/cid/ciaa1037.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchCitationsAltmetricMeSH Keywords and ConceptsConceptsIntegrase strand transfer inhibitorsHuman immunodeficiency virusHazard ratioEFV groupAntiretroviral therapyStrand transfer inhibitorsClinical outcomesRisk differenceINSTI groupComposite outcomeImmunodeficiency virusClinical effectivenessNorth American AIDS Cohort CollaborationFirst-line antiretroviral therapyEnd-stage liver diseaseLong-term clinical effectivenessEnd-stage renal diseaseLong-term clinical outcomesComposite clinical outcomeFirst ART regimenInitial ART regimensAdverse clinical outcomesModern antiretroviral therapyTransfer inhibitorsAcute myocardial infarctionFour targets: an enhanced framework for guiding causal inference from observational data
Lu H, Li F, Lesko C, Fink D, Rudolph K, Harhay M, Rentsch C, Fiellin D, Gonsalves G. Four targets: an enhanced framework for guiding causal inference from observational data. International Journal Of Epidemiology 2024, 54: dyaf003. PMID: 39868475, PMCID: PMC11769716, DOI: 10.1093/ije/dyaf003.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchCitationsAltmetricMeSH Keywords and ConceptsSelection Bias Requires Selection: The Case of Collider Stratification Bias
Lu H, Gonsalves G, Westreich D. Selection Bias Requires Selection: The Case of Collider Stratification Bias. American Journal Of Epidemiology 2023, 193: 407-409. PMID: 37939152, PMCID: PMC10911840, DOI: 10.1093/aje/kwad213.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchCitationsAltmetricGeographic and temporal trends in fentanyl-detected deaths in Connecticut, 2009–2019
Lu H, Crawford F, Gonsalves G, Grau L. Geographic and temporal trends in fentanyl-detected deaths in Connecticut, 2009–2019. Annals Of Epidemiology 2023, 79: 32-38. PMID: 36669599, PMCID: PMC10163838, DOI: 10.1016/j.annepidem.2023.01.009.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchCitationsAltmetricMeSH Keywords and Concepts
2026
Spatiotemporal trends of birth defects in North Carolina, 2003–2015
Lu H, Olshan A, Serre M, Anthony K, Fry R, Forestieri N, Keil A. Spatiotemporal trends of birth defects in North Carolina, 2003–2015. Annals Of Epidemiology 2026, 115: 85-90. PMID: 41698779, PMCID: PMC12912798, DOI: 10.1016/j.annepidem.2026.01.012.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchMeSH Keywords and ConceptsConceptsNon-chromosomal birth defectsHighest prevalenceTemporal trendsEpidemiological studiesStudy of birth defectsNorth CarolinaLive birthsNorth Carolina Birth Defects Monitoring ProgramEpidemiological studies of birth defectsBirth defectsPrevalence of birth defectsChromosomal birth defectsCensus tract levelBirth Defects Monitoring ProgramHigh prevalence areasSoutheastern North CarolinaInfant mortalityPoisson modelPrevalenceGeographic variationBirthCarolinaUnited StatesGeographical areasMachine learning versus logistic regression for propensity score estimation: a trial emulation benchmarked against the PARADIGM-HF randomized trial
Wang K, Rosman L, Lu H. Machine learning versus logistic regression for propensity score estimation: a trial emulation benchmarked against the PARADIGM-HF randomized trial. European Journal Of Epidemiology 2026, 1-12. PMID: 41524886, DOI: 10.1007/s10654-025-01341-7.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchAltmetricConceptsPre-specified confoundersPropensity score approachLogistic regressionCausal inferencePropensity score methodsOveradjustment biasResidual confoundingConfounder selectionSecondary analysisTrial emulationU.S. veteransScoring approachConfoundingLogistic regression approachPropensity score estimationPropensity scoreRandomized trialsScore estimationScoring methodMachine learningTrialsCovariatesRegression
2025
Constructing G-computation Estimators: Two Case Studies in Selection Bias
Zivich P, Lu H. Constructing G-computation Estimators: Two Case Studies in Selection Bias. Epidemiology 2025, 37: 50-56. PMID: 41342792, PMCID: PMC12695055, DOI: 10.1097/ede.0000000000001916.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchCitationsAltmetricMeSH Keywords and ConceptsEffect of a pay-it-forward strategy on reducing HPV vaccine delay and increasing uptake among 15- to 18-year-old girls in China: A randomized controlled trial
Li J, Li Y, Qin C, He Y, Lu H, Xie Y, Ong J, Lu Y, Yang Y, Yang F, Du H, Gong W, Zou F, Larson H, Jit M, Lin L, Smith J, Geng E, Xu D, Tang W, Tang S, Tucker J, Wu D. Effect of a pay-it-forward strategy on reducing HPV vaccine delay and increasing uptake among 15- to 18-year-old girls in China: A randomized controlled trial. PLOS Medicine 2025, 22: e1004535. PMID: 40743312, PMCID: PMC12331080, DOI: 10.1371/journal.pmed.1004535.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchAltmetricMeSH Keywords and ConceptsConceptsPay-it-forward armCommunity health centersHuman papillomavirus vaccineHuman papillomavirusRandomized Controlled TrialsControl armPay-it-forwardCatch-up human papillomavirusHealth centersSealed envelope methodHPV vaccination ratesPay-it-forward strategyIntention-to-treat approachIn-Person VisitsUnvaccinated girlsMiddle-income countriesClinical recordsPrimary outcomeControlled TrialsVaccination delayEligible participantsOutcome assessorsIntervention allocationIn-personVaccine
Academic Achievements & Community Involvement
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Activities
activity Epidemiologic Methods
2024 - PresentJournal ServiceAssociate Editoractivity Design and Analysis Group (DAG)
2024 - PresentAdvisory BoardsCo-ChairDetailsThe Veterans Aging Cohort Study (VACS)activity Yale Pharmacoepidemiology Working Group (PEW)
2024 - PresentAdvisory BoardsCo-FounderDetailsYale Universityactivity AJE Advances: Research in Epidemiology
2024 - PresentJournal ServiceAssociate Editoractivity The Journal of Addiction Medicine
2025 - PresentJournal ServiceStatistical Editor
Honors
honor Exemplary Reviewer of The Year
03/01/2025International AwardEpidemiologyhonor Runner-up for Early Career Best Paper
12/01/2024International AwardAmerican College of Epidemiologyhonor The Lilienfeld Postdoctoral Prize Paper Award Finalist
06/01/2023International AwardThe Society for Epidemiologic ResearchDetailsUnited Stateshonor K99/R00 Pathway to Independence Award
02/01/2023National AwardNIH/NIDADetailsUnited Stateshonor ViiV Healthcare Fellowship
06/01/2019Regional AwardUNC Gillings School of Global Public HealthDetailsUnited States
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E.S. Harkness Memorial Hall
Academic Office
367 Cedar Street
New Haven, CT 06510